Trusting Love
The Battlefield Series 3: Trusting Love
Trust in love, and it will never do you wrong. Carina learns the hard way that sentiment isn't always true and in fact could be deadly. After escaping an attack by two men, one she loved who betrayed her in the worse possible way, Carina is determined to survive and get lost in another town, another place, landing her in Repose, Texas. People are caring, she makes friends easily, and she works in a cool place called the Filling Station. She doesn't trust men in uniform, soldiers, or just about ninety percent of the people she sees on a daily basis. So when she gains the interest of four men who remind her too much of her troubled past, she's ready to hightail it out of there.
The Cortland men, all retired soldiers, set their sights on Carina and can tell right away she is fearful and resistant to an attraction they all feel. Jack, Milton, Jesse, and Dr. Nevin Cortland will do whatever it takes to make Carina smile, and ultimately win her love and affection. When she confides in them the wrong that was done to her and how she may still be in danger, it's a little too late, and they'll need to use all the resources of their professions to not only save her life, but also save one another.
Genre:
Contemporary, Ménage a Trois/Quatre, Romantic Suspense
Length:
53,891 words
TRUSTING LOVE
Dixie Lynn Dwyer
MENAGE EVERLASTING
Siren Publishing, Inc.
www.SirenPublishing.com
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A SIREN PUBLISHING BOOK
IMPRINT: Ménage Everlasting
THE BATTLEFIELD SERIES 3: TRUSTING LOVE
E-book ISBN:
978-1-68295-389-1
First E-book Publication: July 2016
Cover design by Les Byerley
All art and logo copyright © 2016 by Siren Publishing, Inc.
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED:
This literary work may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, including electronic or photographic reproduction, in whole or in part, without express written permission.
All characters and events in this book are fictitious. Any resemblance to actual persons living or dead is strictly coincidental.
PUBLISHER
Siren Publishing, Inc.
www.SirenPublishing.com
Letter to Readers
Dear Readers,
If you have purchased this copy of
The Battlefield Series 3: Trusting Love
by Dixie Lynn Dwyer from BookStrand.com or its official distributors, thank you. Also, thank you for not sharing your copy of this book.
Regarding E-book Piracy
This book is copyrighted intellectual property. No other individual or group has resale rights, auction rights, membership rights, sharing rights, or any kind of rights to sell or to give away a copy of this book.
The author and the publisher work very hard to bring our paying readers high-quality reading entertainment.
This is Dixie Lynn Dwyer’s livelihood. It’s fair and simple. Please respect Dixie Lynn Dwyer’s right to earn a living from her work.
Amanda Hilton, Publisher
Dear readers,
Thank you for purchasing this legal copy of Trusting Love. Carina has gone through something very traumatic. Despite all the love, compassion, and happiness surrounding her in Repose, she can’t seem to move on from the hurt, betrayal, and violence she experienced.
Sometimes it takes that instant connection, a common ground, and empathy of understanding between two people, strangers, for the walls to begin to come down and hope start to ignite.
It will take the compassion, understanding, that instant connection and bond between four men and Carina, to help her to finally let down her guard and trust in love.
May you enjoy her journey.
Happy reading.
Hugs!
~Dixie~
THE BATTLEFIELD SERIES 3: TRUSTING LOVE
DIXIE LYNN DWYER
Copyright © 2016
Carina sat on the back deck at her cottage. She was going to ride her bike to Antonia’s house, which wasn’t very far from hers. She leaned back into the chair and rocked slowly. Despite the peacefulness and calm, gentle breeze her insides were anything but calm. She gripped the arms of the rocker and tried to relax her breathing. She focused on all the trees, the beautiful flowers in bloom and the warm air caressing against her skin.
Repose was breathtaking. Like another world, another planet, far, far away from the troubles of her past and the sick, demented ideas of Kilt County, Missouri. Starling Grove was home. It was where her grandparents helped to raise her after her mother died and her father continued his service in the military.
She wished there were some warning signs about what really went on in Starling Grove. It seemed to her she was pretty damn naive and wished she had decided to not go to a community college and commute but instead had gone away. Far, far away. She rocked back and forth in the rocking chair and still held on to the arms tight. Her recollection of the events left more questions and it was hard not to ponder over them and wonder about the answers. Did she really want to know?
The bottom line was that women had no rights. She loved Steven with all her heart. She gave him her virginity, allowed him control because she thought that control meant he loved her, cared about her and was protecting her. She wiped the tear before it fell. Her heart ached terribly at the memory but also at her stupidity. It was all a lie. He betrayed her in every way a man, a lover, a best friend, a future husband could ever betray his woman.
The sick, guilty feeling hit her hard. Months had now passed since the attack, the memories raw, so deep she thought they would never disappear or minimize. She couldn’t move on. Not like her new friends were, and there was this constant worry that any moment Steven and Collin would arrive to take her back. Or worse, that Cesar and other police officers, male residents of Repose, would turn on her, too. It kept her guarded, and there was no way around it. No way to hide the fear she had, and she was done trying.
She felt guilty, and her gut clenched knowing that it couldn’t be true here. That these were real good people, and they truly wanted to protect women, empower them and help them to succeed in life and be safe and happy. So what that they did it in multiples? No one forced a woman to get involved intimately with multiple men. It just happened. Like with Brooklyn and then Antonia. Those men adored them, and the women expressed their love and safety every moment they could. She wanted that, too. Oh, God, how she wanted to feel safe in a man’s arms, or just safe, period. She was tired of restless nights. Exhausted from feeling down about herself and lacking in self-confidence, feeling dirty, used, and downright ugly because of what was done against her will. It wasn’t fair. She wanted to rid herself of these battle wounds and move on, feel stronger, passionate about life and living.
She wiped the tears before they fell and looked out across the abundant green landscape and sighed at the peacefulness that engulfed her.
Why she was drawn to this place she would never know, but deep down she felt fate had a hand in it. There was no other explanation as she drove miles upon miles, placing states between her problems, her fears and a town no woman should be forced to be part of. She closed her eyes and willed the thoughts away. She couldn’t, though. Not living here in Repose, seeing how the town protected, cherished women and children and went above and beyond the norm to make them feel safe, to find peace, and escape in a town filled with promises.
Teary eyed, she thought about the recent weeks that had passed. They gave her a heavy heart, yet made her rejoice for the love, the connection of community. When one of their own was in trouble they all came out full force to assist. Would they do that for her? Could she ask for such a thing? Embarrassment hit her cheeks, and a dirtiness deep inside that made her feel unworthy, stupid, immature and minuscule.
Antonia came to mind. A new best friend. The only one she ever had, for the others from back home turned on her in the blink of an eye.
“
He loves you though, and Collin is prime pick with his family. You should be honored they both want you as their wife.”
She remembered her friends telling her to stay, to accept the decisions of the order. The Goddamn order. Who were they? Why did they do this? How could they think they had control of women’s lives and could decide their fate?
How had she not known about the practices of slavery? Basically that’s what it was. Women chosen by leaders of an order. She shivered and wrapped her arms around her midsection, thinking she found out too little too late. That she could have been stuck there forever. Bound to two men who would do what they wanted and without anyone protecting her. Even her grandparents feared for her life, but her grandfather suffered, too. He was threatened and he and grandma helped her to escape that day. She wondered now what happened to them. Would the order have hurt her grandparents because of her? The tears now flowed as she rocked back and forth, gripping the arm rest and wondering what she could do.
Part of her wanted to train hard, practice shooting a gun like grandpa had shown her until Steven put a stop to it. She wanted to head back there and get her grandparents out, help them to escape that town and those corrupt individuals. There were so many people there suffering and scared. She couldn’t, though. Five feet four, petite and not some highly trained soldier, she would end up captured and worse off than before. She prayed every night that grandpa and grandma were okay. They would love it here. She wiped her eyes and thought about her grandma’s sweet apple pies, and the scent of tobacco from grandpa’s pipe.